Daily Carry: a long overdue load out post

This post is long over due. I have tried to write it at least ten times over the last few months, but it never came out right.

You have the stuff that are in my main bag, and then you have the stuff I either wear in some fashion or have in my pockets. They are both a integral part of my daily carry. The weird thing is that I carry my Tom Bihn Pilot almost everywhere.

In my pockets or on my person.

I have been a “listen to audio everywhere I go”-person for as long as I can remember. It probably started when I was around ten years old, maybe earlier. It started with Music, before it morphed into the current mix of music, audio books and podcasts. This means that two of the most important things I carry are my headphones and my iPhone.

My current headphones are the black B&O Beoplay H7, they are okay. They look great, and the bluetooth functionality is awesome, but I wish they were a little bit moer comfortable to use for hours upon hours. And the touch crap on the site triggers accidentally too often.

I currently have the iPhone 6s Plus (space grey) with the product red Apple Leather Case. It replaced the silicone case a few months ago, when it started to fall apart. They are both fantastic, the silicone is a little bit more of a pain to get in and out of your pants, but it feels better in my hand and it feels like it gives more protection. You can’t go wrong with either one, and I think they provide the perfect compromise between protection and minimal bulk.

Then we have my Apple Watch. I don’t think it is a great watch, it is a horrible watch. But I think it provides a few other things that makes me forgive its faults. The notifications are very useful, especially if you like me often need to keep an eye on all the notification in case you need to run and put out some kind of fire. And looking at the Apple Watch is far less intrusive than looking at my phone all the time. I also think it is a excellent device to track things like activity, heart rate and sleep. There are better devices for each one, but again Apple have made a device that delivers on “good enough” in a way that most people can use. I have the Series 1 (black or space grey or what the hell its called) with the Product Red Sports band.

Yes I have a thing for red.

My glasses. Black, with a little bit of white on them. I think they are made by converse. They gets dirty all the time and drive me nuts, but I need them and contacts don’t work for me.

The Trove is one of my all time favourite things, and the best wallet in the world. The problem with wallets is that you add more and more crap to them over time and then you clean out some of the crap but the material is leather or something that isn’t elastic. Which means that all of your cards start falling out if you hold it the wrong way. The trove is made out of an elastic material, which solves this problem. And it also has my favourite design, two small pockets on each side and one larger in the middle; easy access to the stuff you use every day and a room for the stuff you use now and then.

My keys. I still use an old school key ring. I have tried to find something better man times by now, but I never find something that give enough on the “better side”.

My bag.

I still use my Tom Bihn Pilot. There are times when I wish I had a little bit more room, but it is the perfect compromise most of the time. Which is exactly what I want.

The main compartment consists of my 13” Space gray MacBook Pro (the 2016 model with the escape key) and two A5 notebooks(currently the Field Notes Steno), used to keep track of tasks and general note taking. One current and one spare.

The middle front compartment. I have a charger for my laptop in the bottom, and my “bag of everything” on top, My “laptop charger system” is actually a little bit interesting. I have four chargers for my laptop. I have one plugged in in the living room, one at my desk at home and one at my desk at work so that I don’t have to climb under and unplug a lot of crap every time I’m going somewhere. The one in my bag is only for when I am somewhere I usually don’t charge it.

And the bag of everything is a cloth bag filled with various “stuff” (I think it was the bag I got with my headphones). I started to put all the various cables, dongles and other stuff floating around in my bag when it started to drive me nuts a few months ago. I currently have two lightning to usb cables, one micro usb cable, one Apple Watch charger, a small usb- hub, two rolls of 35 mm film, a few SD cards, a usb power bank(small one) and spare batteries for both of my digital cameras.

My left side pocket is usually occupied by one of my three cameras, and the inner pocket is filled with a cleaning cloth for my glasses and a bunch of moistened wipes for my glasses. I have three cameras a my Canon 650D, usually paired with my 40mm pancake, my Fujifilm X100t mirrorless camera and my Nikon FM, an Analog SLR usually paired with a 50mm f1.8 E series lens. I carry either my FM or X100 most of the time. I have three cameras because, there are times when I just want to shoot, get the pictures developed and don’t do anything more: analog, my Canon is what I use when I’m going to take a lot of pictures because the battery life and performance is fantastic and my X100 is what I have when I want something small and “SLR-like” because I can’t stand shooting with an iPhone.

And the right side pocket is filled with stationary. I have a Field Notes planner, my Travelers Notebook filled with two lined refills(used for long form writing and journaling) and my Nock.co Hightower. The Hightower is amazing, you can fit three pens and at least four Field Notes in it, probably more. I use it to carry my passport(the only valid ID I currently own) and two Field Notes. I use them to write down shopping lists and other “projects” I need to have access to without pulling out a larger notebook. And three pens: A stainless Retro 51 with black refill that I don’t use enough or at all, but you never know when you need a “regular” pen, my Lamy 2000 (medium nib) filled with Fuyu-gaki, and my Pilot Vanishing Point(medium nib) also filled with Fuyu-gaki.

I use my Vanishing Point the most, especially if I’m just writing a few lines here and there. But I use the Lamy 2000 a lot of long form and when my VP runs out of ink.